Outcasts and Outlaws
Chapter 8
How It All Began
Okay, this took way longer than I thought it would to complete. There's just been so many other things going on in my life over the past week that it took a while to find time to write the last part of this chapter. Anyway, this one finally goes into Connor's illusive past. Enjoy!
Opening Music: RWBY OP 1
(Music starts, shows Connor in a red shirt kneeling behind a tall figure in a green cloak in front of him) (Connor raises his hand, a depressed look in his eye)
THEY SEE YOU AS SMALL AND HELPLESS!
(The figure's green cloak flaps in the wind)
THEY SEE YOU AS JUST A CHILD!
(Dark clouds start to form in Connor's eye, it being zoomed in on until he evaporated into dark clouds)
SURPRISE WHEN THEY FIND OUT THAT A WARRIOR WILL SOON RUN WILD!
[OUTCASTS AND OUTLAWS]
PREPARE FOR YOUR GREATEST MOMENT!
(Shows Ruby in a training room with her scythe)
PREPARE FOR YOUR FINEST HOUR!
(Shows Connor standing in a tree wearing a long black coat)
THE DREAM THAT YOU'VE ALWAYS DREAMED
(Shows Yang on her bike)
IS SUDDENLY ABOUT TO FLOWER!
(Shows a horde of Grimm advancing)
WE ARE LIGHTNING!
(Shows Damien with Brook standing on one side of him, a shadowy figure on the other)
STRAYING FROM THE THUNDER!
(Connor looks behind him as a Grimm drops down and charges, but slashes past it)
MIRACLES OF ANCIENT WONDER!
(Shows Connor, Yang and Ruby charge in)
THIS WILL BE THE DAY WE WAITED FOR!
(Shows Connor standing in front of Beacon looking apprehensive)
THIS WILL BE THE DAY WE OPEN UP THE DOOR.
(Connor starts to fall forward)
I DON'T WANNA HEAR YOUR ABSOLUTION!
(Ozpin catches him and pulls him back up, then Team JNPR come to stand with him)
HOPE YOUR'E READY FOR A REVOLUTION!
(Shows Ozpin walking away from Connor with his Kane over his shoulder)
WELCOME TO A WORLD OF NEW SOLUTIONS!
(Zooms in on Ozpin's eye as a gold gear spins around in it)
WELCOME TO A WORLD OF BLOODY EVOLUTION!
(Shows Ruby, then Yang, then Ozpin, then a shadowy figure)
IN TIME, YOUR HEART WILL OPEN MINDS!
(Connor steps through the shadowy figure and draws his arm blades)
A STORY WILL BE TOLD!
(He does an epic pose)
AND VICTORY IS IN A SIMPLE SOUL!
[END]
As a child, Connor had been the odd one out. He lived in a small village situated on the border between Central Remnant and the desert territory to the east named Osiria. It was a humble village, a few wooden and clay houses spread throughout with a humble school and small market square. It was all Connor had ever known, so he had no dreams of a city life. What he did dream about however, was unlocking his semblance. By the time he was six, he was the only child in the village who hadn't done so. The other kids picked on him, threw stones and called him names. He learnt to ignore them, but he couldn't ignore the actions of his own parents. They tried their hardest to have faith in him, but before too long the other adults convinced even them that he wasn't worth their time. His generation was being relied on to become hunters and bring money back to the village, but he didn't look as if he was destined for that, so they practically ignored him. Apart from feeding him, he was left to his own devices, often told to go and play in the fields on the outskirts of the village. Little Connor was too naive to understand the dangers of this, not yet knowing of the Grimm that stalked the plains.
It was on a normal day that it all happened. Connor came out of school, took a few stones to the back, and met up with his father outside the gate. Years later, he couldn't remember his father's face, just that he was tall and barely ever spoke. This was one of the rare occasions when he did, to tell Connor to go play in the field again. Excited for his favourite pastime, where there was nothing or no one but his own imagination, he handed his backpack over and starting running out of the village gate.
Like everyday before that, he frolicked through the tall savannah grass, imagining what his semblance would one day be. The only way he could stave off the feeling of being left behind by the other kids was to hope he'd catch up one day. As he laughed and fell onto his back however, he saw something out of the corner of his eye that changed his life for the worse.
A trickle of fresh blood, seeping through the grass. He sat up before it touched his head and stared at it curiously. He knew what it was from when he had fallen over years ago, when his parents had still cared enough to help him back up, but he had a terrible feeling about where it was coming from. Out of pure curiosity, he followed the stream of red liquid. As he drew closer to the source, he could hear heavy breathing and the sound of someone shuffling through the grass. He stood up straight to get a look and his breath caught in his throat.
In front of him stood a teenager in simple black clothing, some body armour clinging to his shoulders and legs. His brow was covered in sweat and dirt, which also ran through his jet black hair. The blood, Connor soon realised, was coming from multiple cuts on the man's body, but mainly from an arm severed at the elbow, red gunk spilling out at a worrying rate. The man looked up when he realised Connor was there, his eyes hazy and his body shaking.
"Boy..." He said in a weak tone, seeming to be struggling to even get the words out. "My name is Kane...and I am going to die, unless you help me..." Connor shivered and took a step back, feeling as if the man was peering into his mind. "You don't have a semblance, do you? It's easy to tell." The man continued. "Let's have ourselves a little deal."
With that, the man reached into his pocket and pulled something out. When he opened his palm, it was revealed to be a small purple crystal, it's glow illuminating the quickly approaching night. "This...is the Kalos Crystal..." He explained, his voice becoming more and more croaky and strained. "With this, I can fuse our minds together, I can share your body. In exchange, I will grant you use of my semblance, which I promise will not disappoint you."
The man went silent, holding out the palm of his hand so Connor could get a good look at the crystal. It was a tiny thing, but he could tell it held so much power within it's form. The promise of a semblance was too tempting, the chance to be like the other kids. As he reached out with his own hand, small purple sparks of lightning began jumping off from the crystal's surface, the glow getting stronger. Still, he was determined to touch it. Something about it pulled him in, attracted him. There was a flash of purple light.
The next thing Connor knew, the man was gone, as well as the crystal. Looking down, he saw the blood was still staining the ground. Looking up, he saw the moon. How long had he been standing there that it was the middle of the night? He took off without another thought, thinking that maybe it had all been a figment of his imagination. If only.
When he reached his family's hut, he immediately saw that the door was ajar, a flickering light peeking through. Sneaking closer, he heard voices, three of them. He couldn't make out what they were saying and neither did he pay much attention to their faces, but he saw a hand on the floor beyond them, blood on the carpet. He pushed through before they knew he was there and, to his dismay, saw the bloody bodies of his parents.
The three men muttered amongst one another, trying to figure out where Connor had come from, what to do about it. Meanwhile, Connor held his mother's hand and began to sob. His head hurt, his stomach felt queazy. Through all that pain however, he felt a darkness brewing in the back of his mind.
In an instant, his emotions were replaced by anger, unstoppable fury. Only he wasn't the one in control of the anger, no one was. As he looked down at his body, he saw dark clouds creeping around him, coating his form like a shroud. The three men noticed this and paused in their conversation, seemingly recognising the affliction. Connor's head pounded. He felt an unfamiliar surge of energy pumping through his body. Then, in a flash, everything went to hell.
His house was the first to go. Massive tendrils of dark clouds sprouted out like the legs of a giant octopus, the villagers turning and looking, some already screaming. Before anyone could move, the tendrils came smashing down into the ground one after the other, seeking out anything that moved as their target. Once the villagers started running, the tendrils went for the buildings instead, levelling them in one fell swoop each. One tendril hit a gas canister, it exploding and setting it's surroundings alight. The flames quickly spread around the whole village. Those who weren't hunted by the dark clouds were burnt alive. In a mere few minutes, it seemed everyone in sight had become a corpse. Connor stumbled out of the ruins of his house, the dark clouds centred around him. His headache was killing him, but that was the least of his worries. He smelled the burning ash, heard the last few screams die out. He had no control over any of it, but everything was still his fault. He knew this, because he knew this was that man's semblance.
The three men ran out of the house and got to a safe distance, turning around once they were at the village gate. They looked at the destruction in horror. "What is this? What is that boy doing?" Yelled General Deagle, an older looking man with a short white beard, wearing a white military uniform.
"It looks like a semblance disruption. They occur when a person's semblance develops too fast for them to handle and goes out of control, often leading to temporary madness." Mars answered, a young man in a light green cloak with his hair dyed a matching colour. "We can't let this go on, he'll destroy more than just this village!"
As Mars took a bold step forward, intent on doing something, General Deagle put out an arm and stopped him. "Don't bother risking yourself just to be the hero. With one phone call, my army can be here to unleash all of it's firepower upon that monstrosity." He insisted, Mars' face turning to one with even more horror in it than before.
"You'll kill the boy! He is in once in all this! He needs, deserves treatment, just like anyone else!" Mars shouted back, immediately getting riled up by the threat. "I won't let you do it! I'm not your soldier, I don't have to obey you!"
General Deagle whipped a heavy pistol out from his jacket and pointed it at Mars without even looking, keeping his eyes on the destruction in case it came their way. "If you disagree with me so vehemently, perhaps you would like to join him?" The General threatened, Mars not believing what he was hearing.
"Now, now, Grandfather, let's not turn on each other." Ozpin spoke up from behind them, also staring gravely at the scene before them, but he maintained his composure. "Mars is right, this is not the boy's fault. He can be controlled and contained and Mars is just the person to do the job."
"Well, I disagree! That boy, as you call him- wait!" General Deagle started, but was interrupted by Mars making a mad dash towards the chaos. Deagle took aim at his back. "Damn it, Mars, I'll shoot!" His eyes widened however, when he felt something pressing up against his back, heard a safety being clicked off. He looked out of the corner of his eye to see Ozpin pressing the end of his cane to his back. "Ozpin, you've never once used that thing since I got it for you. I know you won't start now." Deagle said with confidence. "Against your own Grandfather, no less..."
"You're right. I'm not going to shoot. You shouldn't either. Just watch." Ozpin replied, still as calm as anything. "You never paid him much attention, but Mars is a top tier hunter. You'll see any moment now." Deagle simply grumbled and looked back at Mars, who had almost reached his target, and lowered his gun.
Once he was within range, the dark clouds almost reaching out to grab him, Mars put both his hands down on the ash covered ground and activated his semblance. In a flash, he created a massive dome of transparent green energy, trapping the dark clouds inside. Boosting himself with his aura, he began to run up the inclining edge. The dark clouds smashed at the walls from inside, but Ozpin, then looked straight at them and activated his semblance. A gold gear appeared in his eye and spun around, gaining speed. In sync with that, the dark clouds receded back to their previous position, as if they had been rewinded.
"Thanks for the assist!" Mars called back as he reached the top of the dome, flipping himself into a handstand. He saw Ozpin nod, then looked down at Connor below him, barely making out his figure amongst the dark clouds. "Sorry, kid. This is gonna hurt." He said, then pumped as much aura as he could through his hands and into the dome. Great flashes of the green energy filled the inside of the dome like lightning. Connor screamed, part of it being the darkness and the other being a child in pain. The shockwaves almost pushed Mars away, but he stayed true and kept going until the dark clouds died down, overpowered. Connor fell to his knees, Mars disassembled the dome and fell down next to him, catching the young boy before he hit the ground.
He held the boy to his chest as he slowly woke, his body stiff and sore. He couldn't speak a single word at first, but he didn't have to. Mars held his head closer and whispered to him. "It's all right. I'm here." He said. "I'll take care of you from now on."
And so it was.
END
And that is one of my all time favourite chapters, one of the classics. Anyway, the next chapter is the last one I have to rewrite and it goes into one last flashback about Connor, one that takes place right after Mars saves him from the King Tajitu. More action in that one too, so I'll get it done ASAP. Until then!
